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Chapter 42: Black Iron Dragon! Eight Fasts! Increase Your Fighting Power!
With the rhythmic thuds of his steps, Kaido carried the bloodied Law towards Caesar's laboratory. Unexpectedly, they encountered the centaur patrol and the snow girl Monet, who, upon noticing the commotion, had been prepared to investigate. The sight of Law, an almost unrecognizable human form, shocked them. They had squared off against Law before and had experienced his overwhelming strength. Yet, here he was, seemingly insignificant compared to Kaido. It made them question the supposed balance of power between the Four Emperors and the Shichibukai. How could the Five Elders have conceived the notion that the seven martial seas could contain the likes of the Four Emperors?
Monet, contemplating the unnecessary need for investigation, suddenly recalled that her heart was still in Law's possession, its location unknown to her. She had once spurned Kaido's invitation, and while he appeared not to care, she did not dare ask for any favors. Her anxious mouth twitched; perhaps this was the cost of defying Kaido.
"Go get a doctor, put him in seastone handcuffs and heal him. Jack will come and pick him up," ordered Kaido to Teabeard, depositing Law on his crocodile's lower half. Startled by the sudden instruction, a shivering Teabeard quickly assented.
Kaido strode past the onlookers and pushed open the door to Caesar's research room. He found Caesar caressing his mace as if it were precious. The tech's affectionate handling of the spiked mace was such that, if not for its prickly nature, Caesar might have pressed his cheek against it.
"What are you up to?" Kaido asked in a frigid tone.
Startled, Caesar raised his hands high, then hurried towards Kaido with a pleading look and an exaggeratedly distressed expression. Witnessing this, Kaido could not suppress a tsk of irritation.
"Kaido-sama!!! Please allow me to keep this mace!! In exchange, I promise to scour the world and construct an even more fitting weapon for you!" Caesar wailed, clutching Kaido's calf.
Kaido immediately discerned that the experiment must have been a success and that Caesar likely had stumbled upon a technological breakthrough. However, that was not compelling enough for Kaido to relinquish the weapon he'd wielded for decades.
"Let go," he commanded with a brief glance.
Caesar promptly released his grip, fear evident in his actions. Kaido then extended his enormous right hand towards the mace and bellowed, "Eight Fasts!"
The mace responded, quivering autonomously as if bestowed with life. It spiraled in the air before Kaido grasped it firmly. Holding the weapon now felt remarkably different. In the past, despite skillful manipulation as though it were an extension of his own body, it had remained a mere cold weapon. Yet now, it seemed alive, possessed of a will, and Kaido even sensed its consciousness.
This extraordinary evolution likely stemmed from the green dragon fruit, giving non-living objects life. Such a feat would not have been possible without Vegapunk's groundbreaking technology.
Life factor! Kaido immersed himself once more in his experiments. With a new life granted to him, he believed he could enhance the strength of his weapons. As Kaido's consciousness wavered, the [Daigo Empowerment] icon shone brightly. He didn't hesitate and promptly began the process.
The aura around his mace intensified, its majesty and fearsome power palpable throughout the institute. Unlike the previous need to strike Yamato repeatedly, the medium now required no action, and the rate at which its strength improved greatly exceeded that of Yamato.
The Eight Fasts, already steeped in the color of armed arts, darkened further, to the point where it seemed to absorb light. Caesar, sitting on the ground, looked on in shock at the evolving mace and scrambled backward.
"This, this, this..." Caesar was so terrified that his words faltered.
Within minutes, the Eight Fasts' presence peaked and then quietly subsided, as if deliberately reining in its formidable aura. Kaido, curious to see the changes, stepped out into the frosty expanse and tossed the mace aloft.
Mind-linked with Kaido, the Eight Fasts transformed into a massive green dragon, stretching tens of meters long. It lacked the additional horns of Kaido's oni clan and didn't resemble the pink loach form of the original host, Momonosuke. Instead, it became a black iron dragon, radiating strength and invincibility.
Kaido, viewing the dragon, recognized its potential as his ultimate weapon. It had retained his decades of combat experience, and in future battles, it could morph into a half-weapon, half-dragon form to aid Kaido. The power it unleashed now was almost double the previous level.
Unable to contain his glee, Kaido exclaimed, "Oh Caesar! You've outdone yourself this time! I will reward you!"
This triumph was more than just enhanced damage; it represented the fighting prowess of an additional phantom beast species, rivaling that of Yamato. The Iron Dragon, shared in Kaido's joy, leaped down and contracted to a more manageable size, similar to its mace form, and settled on a flame cloud near Kaido.
"Oh, you'll stay close to me in this form from now on!" Kaido laughed, caressing the Eight Fasts' sturdy head, which affectionately nudged his hand in response.
Meanwhile, Caesar grudgingly suppressed his tears, berating himself for not discovering this marvel earlier and cursing Vegapunk for deeming it a failure. Yet, he kept silent, not daring to voice his frustration.